1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a ventilated walking shoe.
2. Description of the Prior Art
It is known that conventional walking shoes are constituted by an upper, an insole stitched along its edges to the lower border of the upper, and a sole that is applied by gluing to the insole and to the border of the upper. The structure of ventilated walking shoes differs from the structure of conventional shoes in that the sole is applied by gluing it to the lower border of the upper instead of gluing it to the insole. Italian Patent No. 1,259,154, in the name of the present Applicant, discloses a ventilated shoe of this type. That shoe includes a mid-sole made of natural fibers, which is arranged between a perforated leather insole and the sole. The mid-sole is surrounded by a perimetric edge for connection between the upper and the insole. Between the sole and the mid-sole there are components made of natural fibers, which are accommodated in cavities formed in the bottom of the sole at the heel and/or shank and/or toe and are covered by a layer of microporous membrane. Such ventilated shoe has a component arranged at the shank and faces an opening formed on the edge of the sole, so as to allow expulsion of the perspiration that accumulates in the mid-sole. The microporous membrane that surrounds such component is meant to prevent external moisture from entering the shoe through the sole, accordingly preventing correct evacuation of perspiration through such component.
The drawback noted in that shoe is that it tends to tear and break at the region where the upper and the sole are joined, at the opening that accommodates the component that evacuates the perspiration collected in the mid-sole. The gluing, that in conventional shoes affects the entire edge of the sole and the entire lower border of the upper, is in fact not possible in the described ventilated shoe, because the edge of the sole is interrupted by this opening. Therefore, at this opening the connection between the upper and the sole is provided by this component. The structure of the component is not very strong per se and is also subjected to the deteriorating action of perspiration and of external factors such as humidity. Accordingly, this component tends, after sometime, to unglue from the perimeter of the opening in the sole or from the edge of the upper or from both. The shoe must therefore be repaired but the aesthetic and functional aspect of the shoe are compromised.
The aim of the present invention is to overcome the cited drawbacks of the prior art.
An object of the invention is to prevent tears or breakages of the shoe at the component that evacuates the vapor collected in the mid-sole.
An object of the invention is to improve a ventilated shoe with an unobtrusive variation in the structure and outward aesthetic appearance.
A further object of the invention is to provide a ventilated shoe that can be produced easily and with normally commercially available materials, using methods commonly employed in the shoemaking field, at low costs, and significantly increases the durability of the shoe.
A further object of the invention is to provide an improvement that can be applied to a wide range of ventilated walking shoes in terms of shapes, styling and size.
This aim and these and other objects that will become better apparent hereinafter are achieved by a ventilated walking shoe as claimed in the appended claims.
The openings are formed at the shank of the shoe, one on each side, have an approximately elliptical shape, and are elongated in the direction of the extension of the edge.